Greetings, Friends partners!
I hope everyone had a fun, outdoor adventure-filled summer. It’s hard to believe September is already upon us. I wanted to share a brief update on our progress for the Friends group Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) templates and related program changes.
Once again, thanks to the eight groups around the state plus Parks & Trails Council staff and leadership for providing helpful comments and questions about the MOU. As I probably mentioned before, we heard you loud and clear and took time to detangle and demystify many of these concerns. As typically happens in state government, finding the answers to these questions and running things up the “chain of command” can take some time. We appreciate your patience with the process.
Basic Overview of the MOU
We have a near-final MOU template that is significantly “less legalese” than the previous version. We expect all Friends groups to use this version to help both Friends groups and the DNR define how we work together and our respective roles. It also clarifies often-confusing processes that the DNR requires for various events, fundraising efforts, and more. So, I think everyone will be much happier with this new version.
The other aspect of the MOU being more partnership-forward is that any groups that plan to do significant fundraising or project work will most likely be required to enter into a partnership agreement, which is more of a contract. This is probably not applicable to most groups. If this does impact your group, it’s likely your group is already a 501c3 and prepared to engage with other organizations in this way.
What happens next?
- Early September: Final approval in the DNR of the MOU
- September/October: Communication and training on the MOU and related aspects such as the annual goal and project plan with DNR staff
- November/December 2024: DNR staff will communicate about these changes with Friends groups
- January 2025: Roll-out new MOU model and related planning
While we expect the MOU template to be almost the same across Friends groups, there will be opportunities to modify or tweak slightly since each group is unique. There will be a lot of communication coming out about this directly from myself and your main DNR contacts in the fall.
Thank you for your understanding and we look forward to working with you through this next (hopefully more organized and collaborative!) phase in our Friends group program. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me with questions in the meantime.
Take care,
Arielle
Photo: Steve Simmer/P&TC Photo Contest